What If I Told You
by Mistress of Blackened Shadows
Summary: The Marauders-hot, talented, mischievous, and popular. The Perth-unexplainable, beautiful, brilliant, and freaks. And the members of these two groups are best friends. Interesting combination. L/J, but revolving around both groups, not just those two.
1. Back To Hogwarts

A/N- ok, I need to explain something about the Marauders. At the end of fifth year, Peter pisses the others off and gets kicked out. Also, at the beginning of fifth year, Sean Andersen and John Bernadette transfer from an American school, and at the end of fith year become Marauders. The Marauders Map was made at the middle of fifth year, which is why the map has Peter's name on it and not Sean and John's. Also, Sean's Animagi form is a jaguar, and John's is a falcon. Sean's nickname is Uruz, and John's is Talon. confusing, no?  
  
disclaimer- I don't own anything you regognise, because I'm not JKRowling. If I am, someone please tell me, so I can claim all this money, and get the 5th book out. (so glad they FINALLY set a realease date!) Anyway, on with the story......  
  
Lily Evans, Laria Black, Rose Callaghan, Kylie Johnson, and Lè Anna McKinley were sitting together on the Hogwarts Express, waiting for their other friends to arrive. It was September first, and the girls were getting ready to enter their sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
  
This group, known as the Perth, the unexplainable, would have been popular but for one thing. They were considered, well, freaks. All of them were extremely pretty, creative, talented, intelligent, and mischevous, however, they were different. Very different. They appeared sarcastic and cynical to everyone, especially Lily and Laria, the unofficial leaders. Anna and Kylie were actually really kind and sweet, making an extreme contrast to Lily and Laria's personalities. Not many people knew this though, because they were too scared of Lily and Laria to come anywhere near. Rose was the one that no one knew anything about. There were many different rumors as to why she had transferred to Hogwarts at the end of fifth year, ranging from she was a convicted criminal running from the Department of Law Enforcement to she was a flowering shrub with the supernatural ability to turn human. She was pretty nice, not to the extent of Kylie and Anna, but not as cold as Lily and Laria either. Don't get me wrong, Lily and Laria could be nice, but you had to prove that you deserved it first.  
  
Another reason the two leaders were feared was they had the worst tempers of anyone at Hogwarts. If one of them was angry, you prayed that the other was right beside her, elsewise you were in for an unpleasant time. Only Lily could calm Laria, and vice versa. If they were both mad, you were shit outta luck, because they'd be too distracted to comfort the other.  
  
The girls each played an instrument, and they had their own little band. Laria played lead guitar, Lily bass guiter, Rose rhthym guitar, Anna played keyboard and Kylie was on drums.  
  
There was something else about this group of girls, though only they themselves knew it. They were Animagi. Lily was a phoenix, Laria was a panther, Rose was a hawk, Kylie an owl, and Anna a vixen. Those animal forms were how they got their nicknames- Lily was Firefly, Laria was Shadow, Rose was Swift, Kylie was Wings or Wingspan, and Anna was Zorra.  
  
It was mentioned earlier that the girls were very pretty, and they were. Lily had straight red hair that fell to just below her shoulders, sparkling emerald green eyes, was about 5"8 and slender. Laria was about as tall as Lily, with long, wavy black hair, deep blue eyes that occasionaly looked purple, and a slim form. Rose had straight-ish dirty blonde hair, blue-grey eyes, and was shorter than Lily and Laria, being about 5"5. Kylie had short blonde hair, and blue eyes, and was the shortest of them all, coming to about 5"3. Anna's dark brown hair was extremely curly, and her eyes were light brown. She was very skinny and was about 5"6.  
  
"Where are the guys? They're gonna miss the train!" Anna exclaimed. Laria looked up from tuning her guitar.  
  
Raising an eyebrow at Anna she asked, "Why are you worried? They're big boys, they can get on the train by themselves."  
  
"I think," Rose interjected," that her comment translates to, 'Where is Remus? If he misses the train I don't know what I'll do!'" Anna blushed, and bowed her head to hide it. Lily, however, saw.  
  
"Awwwww, does Anna have a crush on Remi?" she teased.  
  
"No," Anna mumbled, blushing more.  
  
"Suuuuure Anna," Laria said.  
  
The guys the girls were referring to were the Marauders, namely James Potter, Sirius Black(he and Laria were twins), Remus Lupin, Sean Andersen and John Bernadette. They were friends of the girls, but unlike them, they were the most popular guys in school(that was another reason the girls were so hated- they hung out with the guys, and 'they're just freaks!'). Each of them had at least five or six girls following them at once, and there were numerous ' fan clubs' for them. These fanclubs were pretty much 'we hate the Perth' clubs, too, but the girls didn't care. It was no wonder that so many girls vied for the male Marauders attention, they were, to say the least, very good-looking.  
  
James was about 6'2, with messy black hair and glasses. His eyes were hazel, and his body was well muscled. Sirius was a little taller than James, standing at about 6'3, had long-ish black hair, eyes that were identical to Laria's, and a perfect body. Remus' neat blond hair was the exact opposite of James', but his light blue eyes were in constantb turmoil. He was around 6 feet, and was slightly skinnier than the others. John had dark brown hair, grey eyes, and a nice build. He was about 6"1. Sean had light brown hair, dark blue eyes, a muscular body and was about the same height as James.  
  
All of the Marauders and Perth were in Gryffindor, and made up the Quidditch team. James, Lily, and Anna were Chasers, Laria and Si were Beaters, Sean was Keeper and Remus was Seeker. Kylie was the reserve Seeker, John was the reserve Keeper, and Rose was the reserve Chaser.  
  
It was quiet for a bit, but then Lily broke the silence by asking,"Laria, what's the rhythm at the beginning of 'Penny Lane'?" Laria reached across the space between her and Lily and played a few chords on Lily's bass guitar.  
  
"That, at least I think so," she replied. Lily nodded.  
  
"Sounds right." Just then, the door to the compartment opened. The girls looked up, hoping it would be the guys, but found bitter disapointment. Instead of their friends, it was the biggest bitches in Hogwarts- Calypso Beltane, Alexis Martin, Meaghan Stanley, Aurora Birnes, and Victoria Revelle.  
  
"Where's James?" Calypso asked. She and her friends were some of the girls that constantly followed the Marauders around, and they were also the biggest bitches in Hogwarts. They were each in love with a different Marauder, but all of the Marauders hated them. They just could not grasp that concept.  
  
"Look, Beltane, get this through that thick skull of yours," Laria snapped. "James doesn't like you, much less love you. So shut the hell up and get out."  
  
Calypso glared at her. "Someone's bitchy today, aren't they? Now where is he? I know you know."  
  
Laria opened her mouth to say something, but Lily beat her to it. "I suggest that you stop, Beltane. She is no mood for this today. Normally, I'd just let her verbally maul you and then curse you until you wished you were dead, but I'm feeling generous. Leave!"  
  
"Um, I don't think so," Alexis said in her high, slightly whiney voice. "We- "  
  
But the girls never heard the rest of that sentence, because Laria rapidly chanted some complex spells, and the girls ran out of the compartment screaming.  
  
"What did you do to them?" a voice asked. Standing in the doorway Calypso and her friends had just vacated were the Marauders.  
  
"Nothing, other than place an Illusion spell on them so they think that they're in an Immortal Plane, such as, say, the Plane of Mischief," Laria responded nonchalantly. Lily smirked.  
  
"What else Laria? I know that an Illusion spell isn't that long." Laria smiled at her best friend.  
  
"And made them fall madly in love with various disgusting Slytherins, like Malfoy, Snape, Crabbe, Goyle, and Nott. They'll be throwing themselves at them all night." The others smiled.  
  
"Well, that isn't all that new, is it? They're always throwing themselves at someone, though it's usually one of you," Kylie said, gesturing towards the guys. That sent the girls into gales of laughter as they remembered various times when the Marauders had been forced to run for their very lives, and soon the guys had to join in.  
  
When they had calmed down, Laria turned to Anna and Kylie. "Get your stuff out. We're gonna play for a bit." The girls nodded, and Laria waved her hand and the compartment expanded so there would be enough room for Kylie's drum set. As soon as they were ready, Anna and Kylie looked at Lily and Laria.  
  
"What are we playing?" Rose asked. Laria looked at Lily.  
  
"Shoulda Known Better, Penny Lane, and then go from there?" she asked.  
  
"Sounds good."  
  
"Play Let It Be after that, would you?" James asked. The boys loved listening to them play, they were great. And not only did they play good, the sang excellently as well.  
  
Lily nodded. "Alright, let's go." Suddenly the compartment was blaring with music as they started to play 'Shoulda Known Better'.  
  
"I shoulda known better with a boy like you, that I would love everything that you do, and I do, hey hey hey, and I do."  
  
The girls played various Beatles songs for about two hours, then they put their instruments away.  
  
"That was really good," John said to the girls.  
  
"It oughta be,"Sirius replied. "All summer, all I heard was lyrics from every single Beatles song known to man. But it could have been worse, at least I like The Beatles."  
  
Laria smiled. "Yeah, it was driving our Mum insane....she hates The Beatles."  
  
"She doesn't know what she's missing," Remus said.  
  
Laria yawned. "I'm going to sleep, I'm exahausted." She tucked her feet up under her and leaned against the person next to her, who just happened to be Sean. Lily opened Laria's trunk and pulled out a blanket.  
  
"Here," she said, spreading it over her.  
  
"Thanks Firefly. Night everybody." She was asleep in five minuets.  
  
"Where's the food lady?" Sirius asked after a while.  
  
"Up front, most likely," Sean replied.  
  
"I'm going to go get some food, then," Si said. "Anyone else coming?"  
  
"I will,"James said, standing up.  
  
"Would you get me a few chocolate frogs while you're up there? I can't exactly get up." He motioned to the sleeping girl who was leaning on his shoulder.  
  
James laughed. "Sure."  
  
The rest of the train ride passed uneventfully, unless you count Laria giving Lily jelly legs when she woke her up, and Lily casting the Tickling Charm on her in return.  
  
When the Hogwarts Express reached the school, the Marauders climbed into one of the horseless carriges, ignoring the fact that only four were allowed to each. As they walked into the school, Peeves was throwing cupcakes at the people who walked in. He aimed one at Lily, who just waved her hand and sent the cupcake flying back at him. While he was busy wiping cupcake off his face, the Marauders made their way into the Great Hall.  
  
Nothing really happened at the feast, just the same old same old, and soon the Marauders were walking towards Gryffindor Tower. Once in the Common Room, they said their goodnights and headed to bed.  
  
The next morning, Lily was woken up by a pillow hitting her in the head. "What was that for?" she asked sleepily, rolling over.  
  
"Zap!" was her answer, as Laria climbed onto her friend's bed and began jumping up and down.Lily didn't say anything, just kicked Laria. "Oh come on Firefly, at least you could say 'shazam!' before you kicked me."  
  
"Why the hell are you up? You're always the last one awake," Lily said, finally sitting up.  
  
"Because," she paused. "You know, Lily, that's a good question. Do you know the answer?" She threw herself down beside Lily.  
  
Lily looked at her like she was insane(well, she was, but that's beside the point). "Laria, people usually ask questions they don't know the answer to," she explained slowly, as if to a child.  
  
Laria thought about that for a minute. "Ok, I take that as a no then." She got up and grabbed a pair of jeans and an over-sized t-shirt she'd stolen from Sirius and headed to the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower," she called.  
  
"And I'm going back to sleep," Lily muttered, laying back down.  
  
"Oh no you aren't, because we'll never get you up again," Anna said from her bed.  
  
"I'll get up in-"  
  
"Fifteen minuets, I promise," Laria finished. "We know better by now."  
  
"I thought you were taking a shower,"Lily said.  
  
"I am, as soon as you get out of bed. I'm not mean enough to leave Rosie- Posie and Anna here without my help. Who knows where they would be without the amazing powers of me, the Goddess of Wallpaper and Rubber Duckies?" The last part was said as she jumped off of her bed onto Lily's. "Up Firefly."  
  
Lily didn't respond, other than to pull the blanket over her head.  
  
"No matter how long you lay there, Jamesie isn't going to join you. At least not this morning," Laria said teasingly. As expected, that comment got Lily up. She started to chase Laria, who ran into the bathroom and locked the door behind her.  
  
"Laria darling, you'll regret that remark." Turning back to Anna and Rose, she found they were both laughing rather hysterically. "Oh, shut up you two."  
  
A/N-so, what'd you think? I know this chapter was short, and I promise the others will be longer! But I needed to post this before I could post my other story, so I had to stop. Oh, btw, Anna's last name is McKinley, NOT McKinnon, just so the two aren't mixed up. Please please please R/R! ~Laria 


	2. A Discovery

The first week of school passed quickly, and soon the Gryffindor sixth years had settled into their routines, along with the rest of school. Unfortunately, they were put in Potions with the the Slytherins for yet another year, but then again, it was some invaluable prank time. The sixth years had thought that since they had just taken their O.W.L.s that the teachers would slack off a bit, but they were sadly mistaken. The teachers pushed them just as hard, if not harder than before, saying that they had only two more years before they would graduate. In that first week alone they had so much homework it was unbelieveable.  
  
On Friday night, after finishing a particularly grueling essay on on human to object transfiguration for McGonagall, Laria waved her hand and the other girls' books shut with a snap, and their quills flew out of their hands.  
  
"Laria, what are you doing? I have to finish that Charms homework!" Anna said, annoyed.  
  
"We've been working for three hours straight! I need a break, and I'm willing to bet that you all do, too," she explained, twirling the quill she'd summoned from Rose.  
  
Lily raised an eyebrow. "What'd you have in mind, Shadow?"  
  
"Exploring those mountains on the other side of Hogsmeade for a bit, or maybe the Forest. And then stopping at Honeydukes and Zonko's for some late- night shopping."  
  
"Hell yea, screw the homework, let's go," Rose said, already gettting up and heading to the portrait hole. Lily laughed.  
  
"Rosie, you might want to wait a second. We need to do a bit first." Rose turned around and came back.  
  
"What could we possibly have to do?" she asked exasperatedly. It was obvious she wanted to get out of there.  
  
"Well, for one, we have to take all this," Laria gestured to their homework,"upstairs, unless we want to do it over, because leaving it here would only be really stupid, we have to get our cloaks, cause its chilly out tonight and we have to-" Rose groaned.  
  
"Ok, ok, I get it. Let's do it, then, so we can leave." She began gathering up her stuff to take it up to the dormitory, as did the others.  
  
They met back in the Common Room, and left with a wave to the Marauders, who were sitting by the fire. As it was very crowded under James' invisibility cloak with five people, they weren't going to put it on since they would be in their animal forms most of the time. They were almost to the statue of the humpbacked witch when they ran into Calypso and her friends. Laria groaned.  
  
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the Gryffindor bitches," Calypso said, tossing her long blonde hair.  
  
"Isn't it past your bedtime Beltane? You wouldn't want to miss out on your beauty sleep, cause you sure as hell need it," Lily lashed out.  
  
"Not near so much as you do, Evans," Victoria shot back.  
  
"Shut the hell up. Now go fuck someone, get paid, and leave us alone," Laria snapped.  
  
Victoria's eyes narrowed. "Why you little-" She was cut off by Aurora.  
  
"Stop bluffing slut. We all know that's why you hang out with the Marauders."  
  
"For a Ravenclaw, you're dumb as shit," Rose said. "If we were sleeping with the Marauders, don't you think we'd have a bit more of a reputation? Come on, we've got better stuff to do than converse with a bunch of overpaid whores."  
  
While the Ravenclaws stood with stunned and furious looks on their faces, the Perth turned and walked into another corridor.  
  
When they were sure thye hadn't been followed, they slipped into the tunnel to Hogsmede. As they walked, they talked about what they planned to do.  
  
"I say we try the mountains," Kylie said, "and then go to Zonko's, 'cause it's open all night and all. And I mean, we've gone over every inch of the Forest at least twice." Laria nodded.  
  
"Sounds good to me. Lily-flower?"  
  
"Yeah, Kylie's right. And maybe we can finally beat the Marauders in finding something- I know for a fact that they've never gone into the mountains." Lily turned to Anna and Rose. "That okay with you two?" They nodded their agreement , and the Perth continued on their way.  
  
Half an hour later they reached the trapdoor under Honeydukes, and Lily pushed it open carefully and looked around. No one was in the celler, so they climbed out and entered the store. They were almost to the door when someone came down the stairs near the back of the shop.  
  
"Who's there?" a voice called. The Perth looked at each other uneasily. There wasn't anywhere to hide, and they could hardly transform right then. "Lumos," they heard the voice say. His wand lit up and cast a ray of light across the room. Lily stepped foward.  
  
"Hello. You must be the owner, Mr..." she trailed off.  
  
"Bubbles," he supplied. Lily got a strange look on her face, but kept talking.  
  
"Mr. Bubbles. You're probably wondering why we're in your shop at this time?" Mr. Bubbles nodded. "Well, you see, sir, we were shopping here earlier today, and we had just come out of Quality Quidditch Supplies, when someone tripped her," she pointed at Laria," and she hurt her ankle. Some people who live here just happened to be walking by, and took us back to their house so they could look at it. Mrs. Sibley managed to fix it perfectly, but by then it was dinner time, so she invited us to stay. We didn't realize how late it had gotten, and Mr. Sibley told us that you knew a way back to Hogwarts that was shorter than going all the way around." Mr. Bubbles nodded.  
  
"Yes, I do know a way, but it's no shorter, and it would probably be much easier to go the regular way." The girls nodded and thanked him, and left the store.  
  
*Meanwhile, with the Marauders....*  
  
"Where did the girls go?" James asked. Remus shrugged.  
  
"I dunno. Somewhere."  
  
"Helpful. Si, ask Laria would you?" James said. Sirius and Laria had been able to talk telepahically since they were really young, and it was rather useful at times.  
  
"I just did. She won't tell me," Sirius responded.  
  
"Oh well. We'll ask them when they get back," John said.  
  
*Back with Perth....*  
  
A lithe, solid black panther with eerily glowing purple eyes made its way with ease through the scree scattered over the slim resemblance of the mountain path it was following. Right above it flew a large phoenix, with a falcon and an owl slightly behind. Scampering directly behind the panther was a reddish vixen, the tip of her tail white. The five animals were strangely silent, making no sound other than the clattering of pebbles as they skittered out from under their feet. Suddenly, the panther stopped short. The other animals halted as well, wondering what caused the panther to stop. The panther began to slowly move toward a place in the side of the sheer rock face that was slightly darker than the rest. As it drew closer, the panther stilled again and transformed into Laria. She motioned to the others to transform as well, and soon five girls standing there instead of five various animals.  
  
"Look," Laria whispered, pointing to the darkened spot. The rest of Perth did as they were told, and saw that it was the enterance to a cave, so perfectly rounded it looked man made. But as they saw what was inside, the girls gasped in amazemant and horror.....  
  
A/N- what'd you think? Its not very long, sorry about that. I'll try to have the next chappie up soon. please R/R!! ~Laria 


	3. The Pool

*"Look," Laria whispered, pointing to the darkened spot. The rest of Perth did as they were told, and saw that it was the entrance to a cave, so perfectly rounded it looked man made. But as they saw what was inside, the girls gasped in amazement and horror.....*  
  
In the middle of the cave there was a pool of dark blue water, perfectly still. As the girls watched, however, ripples began to move across it, as if caused by a non-existent wind. Then, a light appeared in it, along with several dark- robed, hooded figures. The light was coming from a wand, held by the obvious leader, and he was speaking. Although they didn't hear anything, somehow all of Perth knew what he was saying.  
  
"Kill them all. Do not let any of them escape. If you do, the consequences will be-unpleasant." When he finished speaking, the figures began to move forward in small groups of twos and threes. Soon, they were no longer shown within the pool, but the five girls, though still hearing nothing, got the impression of bloodcurdling screams and raucous laughter. Then the pool was still again, with no pictures and no images of sound.  
  
The five girls exchanged glances.  
  
"What was that?" Kylie asked softly.  
  
"Death Eaters," Lily replied.  
  
"But how could we see them? And-well, for lack of a better word- hear them?" Rose asked.  
  
"I think," Laria said, "that it's a sort of window. Not into the past or future, but into the present." Seeing Anna, Kylie, and Rose's bemused looks, she added, "It shows things that are happening at the time a person looks into it, but in a different place. Supposedly, Merlin had a crystal cave that did that. This pool could be the same type of thing."  
  
"That makes sense," Lily said. "But why the present? As far as we know, that could be the future. Or the past. There have been Death Eater attacks before, and I'm sure there will be many more. Of course, it is possible that it shows the present."  
  
"I don't know why I said the present. It just struck me as something that was happening right then. But we'll know tomorrow morning when we get the Daily Prophet. Now, call it my freak sense of curiosity or just intuition, I want to see if there's anything else in there. Coming?" Laria asked, already halfway into the cave.  
  
Lily nodded, as did the other three, and they all walked into the cave. The pool was larger than they had thought, taking up much of the space in the main chamber. At the back there were two smaller rooms. Both of these were empty, but in the second there was another adjoining room. That was the smallest room, not even half of the size of the main chamber, the one that contained the pool. But it was also the most beautiful room; the walls were covered with amethysts of all shapes and sizes, and the light from Lily's wand caught their many surfaces, shooting purple beams of light all over.  
  
"Nice," Lily and Laria said at the same time.  
  
"Wow," said Anna.  
  
"You guys, I don't like this place. Can we leave? Please?" Kylie begged.  
  
"Ky, it's okay. I promise. Did that vision in the pool freak you out?" Lily asked, turning to face her. Kylie nodded.  
  
"Can we leave though? And come back later. Just..later. Tomorrow. Anytime but now." Laria nodded.  
  
"Of course. We'll come back tomorrow then, okay?" The others nodded and followed Lily out of the cave before taking on their animal forms once more.  
  
However, they were not able to return to the cave for another week. The next morning at breakfast, the five girls were waiting impatiently for the mail to arrive so that they could figure out what time the pool showed. Finally, they heard the flutter of the owls' wings, and saw all five of their owls, Pandora being Laria's, Chloris being Lily's, Juliette Rose's, Fluffy being Anna's and Blair Kylie's, coming towards them. Chloris was carrying The Daily Prophet, and the other mail was placed aside so that they could read the paper. Lily gasped, along with the others, when she saw the headline. TWENTY KILLED IN DEATH EATER ATTACK ON SURREY. Kylie paled. Her parents and little brother lived in Surrey.....she quickly looked through her mail, dreading what she might find. There were no letters saying that her family was dead, but that didn't mean anything. It could be days before they identified the bodies, or they could be missing.  
  
"Ky," Lily said gently, "why don't you write a letter home? That way you'll know, either way." Kylie nodded, not being able to speak, picked up a quill and piece of parchment and began to write a letter home to her mother. As Kylie finished her letter, the Marauders came into the Great Hall and sat down by Perth.  
  
"What's wrong with Kylie?" James asked Lily quietly. Lily handed him the paper. "Was her family-" he trailed off. Lily shrugged.  
  
"We don't know. She didn't get a letter, but still......She just wrote a letter home. I hope to any God out there that they're alive." James nodded.  
  
"Yeah. She doesn't need anymore deaths right now. She just got over her grandmother's."  
  
"Exactly. I hate to think what would happen if they aren't alright." Even as they discussed something as serious as that, James couldn't help but notice how beautiful Lily was. She looked like a goddess, some unreal beauty. He was falling for her, no doubt about that. But she would never like him as more than just a friend...It just wouldn't happen. "James?" He shook himself out of his trance.  
  
"Sorry. I was just thinking."  
  
After breakfast, all ten of the friends were sitting in the girls' dormitory, and Lily was telling the Marauders about the cave and the pool, and what they saw in it.  
  
"So you think that it's some sort of divination tool, but that it shows the present instead of the future?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Exactly," Rose said.  
  
"I don't know if this makes sense, it's just a thought. But what if everything shown in the pool was relevant to the watchers? Like if I looked into it, I might see something that relates to me, while if, say, Beltane looked in, she would see something different," Remus suggested.  
  
"It's possible," Laria said. "What happened last night affected us all, as Kylie lives in Surrey. But if someone else who wasn't close to Ky was up there at the same time, they wouldn't have seen it."  
  
"Remus, I think you're right. In Divination, the real visions people have usually pertain to themselves, or something that affects them," Lily said. "So it would make sense that everything seen in the pool pertains to the viewer."  
  
"But what's the use of a vision of the present? It's already happening, there's nothing that can be done to prevent it, and you can't prepare yourself for it," Sean said.  
  
"You could identify someone....like a Death Eater. Or you could see them planning an attack and warn someone," James replied.  
  
"Okay, as much as I love talking about this, change of subject. Now," Laria said. Lily looked at her quizzically.  
  
"Wh-" she stopped as Laria gestured to Kylie. She was pale and staring off into space, clutching her knees to her chest. Sirius got up from his seat on Laria's bed and walked over to Kylie's. He sat next to her and put an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to him.  
  
"Kylie, they'll be okay. You'll see. They'll be fine," he said reassuringly. Kylie looked up at him.  
  
"I hope so. I really hope so," she whispered as she snuggled closer to Sirius' chest. She needed to be held right now, she didn't really care by who.  
  
"C'mon, lets go," Lily said. The others got up and followed her out, leaving Si holding a sleeping Kylie.  
  
Kylie was out of it for almost three days, receiving no reply to her letter. Finally, on Tuesday morning, she received it. Ripping it open, she read it quickly, and tears immediately came to her eyes.  
  
"Kylie? Ky honey, what happened?" Lily asked.  
  
"Mum and Dad," she cried. "They're- they're gone. Luke was over at Daniel's house, so he.....he's okay. B-but...." she trailed off into sobs.  
  
"Oh, baby, I'm so sorry." Sirius said. She turned to him and laid her head on his shoulder.  
  
"They can't be gone. They can't be. They just can't," she whispered through her tears.  
  
"I know sweetheart, I know. But you're strong, you can get through this," he replied.  
  
"Can I though?" she asked, raising her head a little.  
  
"Yes, you can. And we're here for you always, you know that," Anna said. "We'll help you."  
  
"I know you will. Can you tell the teachers where I am? I don't think I'm up to classes today."  
  
"Of course. Do you want someone to stay with you?" Rose asked.  
  
Kylie shook her head. "I just want to be alone for a while. That okay?"  
  
"Yeah. We'll bring you some lunch later on," John said.  
  
Kylie stood up. "It'll be alright, Ky. I promise," Sirius said as she did so. She nodded and left the Great Hall.  
  
A/N- Thanks to those of you reviewed, I really appreciate it!! Especially those who put me on their favorites list!! Oh, and before anyone else asks, the reason it was Kylie's parents and not Lily's that were murdered is because in a lot of stories everything happens to Lily. Sure, she's sorta the main character, but that doesn't mean that stuff only happened to her and not her friends. Anyway, please be nice and review!! ~Laria 


	4. Recovery and Relationships

Ch 4 Recovery and Relationships  
  
A/N-I need Remus to be an Animagus for some later things in the plot, so in this story, he is still a werewolf, but also an Animagus with the fox form. I know a wolf might be more fitting, but if you were a werewolf, would you want to be a wolf at other times as well? And I'm sorry for not updating sooner..I just had so much going on!!  
  
Kylie was in a horrible state for the rest of that week. She couldn't pay attention in class, she cried herself to sleep every night, and she wouldn't do anything with her friends. Sirius wasn't doing much better than she was- he was so worried that he could barely function. That Thursday, two days after Kylie got the letter, Laria approached Sirius.  
  
"Siri, can we talk?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah....sure we can," he answered.  
  
"Si...you've fallen for Kylie, haven't you?"  
  
"I....I...yes, I have. I didn't mean to, and I don't know how it happened. Just.one day I looked at her, and knew that I loved her, and have for a while now. I can't live without her, and it scares me that she might never be mine. I can't do anything about it, though. I don't want to jeopardize what we have. I want her love in addition to that, Laria, not instead of it." He looked up at his sister, his eyes silently pleading for help.  
  
"Oh, Siri, go talk to her. Tell her. You aren't jeopardizing anything..I wasn't supposed to say anything, but since this came up..She likes you just as much as you like her, but was too afraid to tell you. And now would be a good time. She needs someone right now, and none of us can be that person. But you can." She took his hand and squeezed it. "Go on, Chocolate Face."  
  
Sirius smiled at the childhood nickname. "Alright. Thanks, Puddin' Head." She laughed and pushed him towards the girls' dormitory.  
  
As he opened the door of the dorm, Sirius tried to steady his shaking hands. 'What's wrong with me?' he thought. 'I've never been this nervous about asking a girl out. Then again, I've never asked Kylie out, either.'  
  
"Kylie?" he said aloud.  
  
"Yeah?" she replied softly from her bed.  
  
"We need to talk," he said, walking over to her and sitting down.  
  
"What about?" she asked.  
  
"Kylie..I..We...Gods, how can I put this? Kylie, I think I've fallen in love with you." He kept his head down, too scared to look into her eyes.  
  
"You.What...Oh my Gods.."  
  
'Shite, shite, shite,' he thought. 'Laria was mistaken, she doesn't love me, now I'm screwed.'  
  
"Sirius...I have one question," she finally said.  
  
"What?" he asked quietly.  
  
"Why the hell haven't you kissed me yet?" Looking up, he smiled. Putting his arms around her, he pulled her close to him and whispered, 'I love you,' before bringing his lips to hers.  
  
Meanwhile, the rest of Perth was having a discussion about what they needed in a significant other.  
  
"I need to know that they don't want me for my looks, for how big my chest is, or how blue my eyes are," Rose said. "I want them to see me, not my body. And I need someone who's willing to cuddle!" The others all agreed enthusiastically.  
  
"Yeah, I know the feeling. But I need him to accept me for who I am, and not try to change that. He has to like me for who I really am, not who he thinks I am or who he wants me to be," Lily told them.  
  
"I need a safety net. I have to have someone to fall back on, someone I know will be there for me, no matter what I say or do. I need someone who will listen and understand, someone I can talk to," Laria explained. "And someone who will sing me to sleep." 'Which is why I'm so attracted to the guy I like.' she added to herself.  
  
"I just want someone who understands me. Which is demanding enough," Anna interjected.  
  
"Remus understands," Rose said sweetly, smiling at her broadly.  
  
"What are you on about now?" Anna asked her impatiently.  
  
"You know good and well what," Rose continued. "You like Remus and you know it."  
  
"Whatever."  
  
"Oh, c'mon, Anna, admit it!" Laria cried. "We all know it, and so do you, so save us time and get it over with."  
  
"Okay..maybe...maybe I do..maybe I like him as...more than a friend.."  
  
"WE KNEW IT!" the rest of Perth, with the exception of Kylie, yelled. Remus, John, Sean, and James looked over at them confusedly.  
  
"You knew what?" Remus asked.  
  
"Nothing," they replied innocently.  
  
After that day, Kylie began to recover much quicker. She never completely came to terms with her parents deaths, but she came as close as she could. Of course, Kylie's return to her normal self cheered Sirius up a lot. And Anna became increasingly uncomfortable around Remus.mainly because Rose kept shooting them both glances and smiling in a knowing way.  
  
About a week later, Perth decided to go back to the pool, this time taking the Marauders along. So, at about eight in the morning on Saturday, the earliest they'd ever gotten up, the ten Gryffindors set out for Hogsmeade. They made it through the tunnel and Honeydukes without incident, and were soon in their animal forms, heading up the mountain. As they walked (or flew), Sean kept playfully biting Laria and batting at her tail. She retaliated by hitting him upside the head with her paw. Eventually, she just leapt at him, causing the other animals to jump out of the way as the jaguar and the panther rolled around, wrestling each other.  
  
When they had reached the cave and transformed, Kylie hung back. She was still a little wary after what the pool had shown her last time.  
  
Quietly, Si walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "It'll be alright, baby. I promise. C'mon." She nodded silently and followed him in.  
  
The pool was black this time, with no swirling images of Death Eaters, screams, or anything else. It was just a puddle of water.  
  
"I don't understand," Rose whispered. "Why wouldn't it show something?"  
  
"Maybe there's nothing going on right now that's important enough to majorly affect us," John replied.  
  
"Could be. Oh well, come see the rest of this place at least," Laria said, smacking the hand that had snaked around her waist. Sean rubbed his hand where she had hit him and, smiling like a maniac for some reason, followed her farther in.  
  
"You got it bad, man, " John whispered as he passed him.  
  
"Believe me, I know," he replied. 


End file.
